Should AI-written grievances be banned?

A worker in Australia has been banned from using AI to draft complaints against her employer. Although her complaints were upheld by the Fair Work Commission, the details had been buried within documents that were “lengthy, wide-ranging, replete with generalizations, repetitive, and often couched in accusatory language”. This resulted in her employer disengaging with the process instead of tackling the legitimate claim.

How should employers tackle AI-written grievances?

AI-generated claims can take more time and resources to deal with. But as seen in the above case, you shouldn’t ignore a grievance or complaint. Even if it’s repetitive, difficult to follow, or contains generic legal references.

If you receive a complaint you suspect has been written by AI, you can ask for clarification. You don’t have to ban the use of AI, especially where an employee would otherwise struggle to articulate their case or structure a complaint. But, you can ask your employee to give you the facts, identify key issues and prioritize their concerns. And you can ask them to make sure the tone is professional, constructive, and focused.

Surge in AI-written cases

There has been a steady increase in AI written disputes in Canadian workplaces, with a recent Quebec case serving as a warning of how wrong things can go when employees rely on AI for employment law support.

Many employment law firms report clients who use tools like ChatGPT to draft documents, responses or severance calculations don't reference the correct Canadian law, hallucinate facts or cite the wrong provincial employment standards. So although the number of employee grievances have risen significantly, they often lead to complicated procedural roadblocks, prolonged timelines, and unnecessary legal costs for both parties. Because these AI-generated documents look highly professional, employees often believe their cases are foolproof. However, when HR teams or corporate lawyers look closely, they find major mistakes.

Could Canadian Courts ban AI-written complaints?

While most jurisdictions haven't officially issued a ban on AI written complaints, there are guardrails in place to regulate their uses so employees don't rely solely on AI when compiling their grievance cases.

The Australian case was a one-off. But it’s not hard to imagine Canadian restricting the use of AI if it continues to lead employees astray.

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